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Sunday, March 23, 2008

I originally had the chicks in an old steel bathtub inside the brooder house. It was ok, but a little small for 28 chicks. I knew right off that I needed a bigger spot for them. I ended up building a 24" tall, wood "fence" in one room of the house. It has a door so I can get through easily. The "room" I built tuned out to be about 7' x 6' - MUCH larger the the tub!

In the corner of this room, I built a box about 16" high, out of plywood. Around the bottom I have a 2x4 on edge , and one corner is open so the birds can get through it. The 2x4 around the bottom is to keep the bedding in the box, and not out in the room. I also put the food and water outside of the box, so it would be easier to refill and there would be less mess.

The heat lamps are over the box, only.

I dumped in about 2/3 bucket of wood shavings and decided to move them on over to test out their new home. They really enjoyed rolling around and kicking up the new chips! The water had leaked out some, when it was in the tub, so part of the bedding was wet. Here it will be easier to keep dry.

I only used about half of the 26" 2x6 I planed down for the chips. I really like how they are working. The chips are big enough so they aren't confused with "food" and they are easy to make. There is also not very much odor with them. I just need to make some more so I have it on hand.

Now, I just need to get the brooder house moved to where it needs to be, and I'll be happy!